SAINTS FOUNDATION (EXTERNAL) FOOTBALL AND EDUCATION PROGRAMME

The Satellites are successfully running out of Sarum Academy- Salisbury; Calthorp Park- Fleet, and Christ The King- Newport (Isle of Wight). The programme combines football and education to give aspiring young boys and girls the opportunities to strive towards a career in sport.

Whilst studying a BTEC level 3 Extended Diploma in Sport and training every week, students will improve their footballing skills, knowledge and tactical awareness along with receiving a first class education.

Our education environments are unique in the sense that we work in smaller classes, therefore maximising the time the teacher can spend with each student on a one to one basis, giving them the best possible opportunity to achieve their target grades and subsequently the best chance of gaining employment or further education upon completion of the programme.

The practical element of the course is 6-8 hours a week, training with an FA qualified coach who is a full time member of staff at Southampton Football Club. The coach will look to support and improve all aspects of the game in different ways; particularly through sessions that have an in-depth structure to make sure participants are learning new things every day.

All abilities will be catered for to ensure each student has a pathway to fill their own potential. A competitive fixture programme will also be included, with preparing for competitive games being part of the daily training.

The additional opportunities for a Saints Foundation Scholar are vast and vary from stadium tours to games at the club’s Staplewood Training Campus. Scholars may also get the privileged opportunity to play at St Mary’s Stadium in the Satellite Cup Final, which will be hosted on the hallowed turf of the prestigious Premier League club.

During the two year programme we will offer all students work experience within the wider Saints Foundation programmes. This will give students an opportunity to improve their skills and get invaluable football knowledge, as well as working with experienced professional coaches across a wide range of programmes.

Andrew Hunt, Education Satellite Co-ordinator said:

“This is a fantastic programme that offers the best options I’ve seen on these types of courses. I’m very excited to be involved in this and with the staff we have involved, the players and students will be learning from the best. I truly believe this is the perfect platform for students wanting to enhance themselves both on and off the pitch.”

Our existing programme has a number of students who have gone on to work for the Foundation in a variety of full and part-time roles, most notably within our current Education provisions at St Mary’s Stadium.

Our drive is to help with each student’s development and progression. We will help and support with whichever route is desired by the students. We have close links for USA Soccer Scholarships, can help with University applications and now offer a Foundation Degree in Community Football & Coaching Development. This is an additional two year course which is intended to offer paid work experience and then lead to potential employment within Saints Foundation or other relevant community sports organisations.

Mark Gamble, Education Manager at Saints Foundation commented:

“From the success we’ve had over the last six years running a programme at the stadium, this has been the natural progression for us to be able to deal with the demand of applications. We are very proud of what we do here and our passion is to continue to grow this in wider areas. We want more people to be aware of Saints Foundation and the fantastic work being done across all of our programmes. We already have students who have come through our programme to now work at the Foundation full time, and we want to add even more to this list.”

For more information on this programme including any open evening at each site, please contact Andy Hunt at: ahunt@saintsfc.co.uk.

St Mary’s Stadium

Britannia Street

Southampton

SO14 5FP

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ABOUT US

Southampton Football Club embraces its role within the community and is committed to ensuring the power of football can have a lasting impact. The Saints Foundation is an independent charity aligned to Southampton Football Club using the brand of the Saints, and sport in general, as a tool of engagement working outside the traditional boundaries of the National Game.